LYNBROOK, N.Y. – An original charcoal drawing by Willem de Kooning, oil paintings by Giovanni Boldini and Hunt Slonem, a fabulous collection of bronze sculptures, dazzling estate jewelry, rare sheet music from the early 20th century and a trove of Hollywood memorabilia from the Cinemabilia store in Greenwich Village, New York will all come up for bid May 24th-25th.

They’re just some of the highlights in a two-day blockbuster sale planned by Weiss Auctions, online and in the firm’s gallery at 74 Merrick Road in Lynbrook. The Wednesday, May 24th auction will be an estate sale, featuring paintings, bronzes, jewelry, stoneware and more. The May 25th session will have Hollywood and rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia, sheet music and more.

Start times both days will be 10 am Eastern time. For those unable to attend in person, internet bidding will be provided by LiveAuctioneers.com and Proxibid.com. Phone and absentee bids will also be accepted. Previews will be held on Sunday, May 21st, from 10-5; Monday, May 22nd, from 10 am to 8 pm; Tuesday, May 23rd, from 10-8; and Wednesday, May 24th, from 8-9:45 am.

Weiss Auctions will welcome bidders to the Bronze Age on May 24th, with pieces by artists such as Steiner, Moreau, Francois, Fagel, Villanis, Gaudez, Kossowski, Picault, Aubert, Carrier and Bergman. Artwork will feature oils, lithographs, etchings and engravings, to include the charcoal drawing by de Kooning (Dutch/Am., 1904-1997) and two oils by Hunt Slonem (Am., b. 1951).

Additional artworks will include Elizabeth Murray’s Up the Dog; works by Levier, Baylinson and Calder; a painting by Amos Ferguson; an oil painting by George Washington Nicholson; a collection of lithos by Sam Francis and Angel Botero; a Kerkom watercolor; a pencil drawing by Munkascsy; an oil by Charles Jay Taylor; and artworks by Scharl, Wolkowitz and Wengenroth.

Estate jewelry pieces have been released for sale to the general public by court order of the New York County and Bronx Public Administrators’ offices. Also sold will be designer pocketbooks, a Fernand Leger scarf, fountain pens, pottery, porcelain, a beautiful bookcase cabinet from the estate of Cecil B. DeMille, a large pair of Murano floor lamps, a large stained glass window set in a lighted shadow box, a collection of walking sticks, collectible steins and many other items.

The undisputed headliner of the Thursday, May 25th session is the massive collection of Ernest Burns, owner of Cinemabilia, for years a venerable fixture on Cornelia Street in New York City’s Greenwich Village. The collection, offered on behalf of the New York County Public Administrator, features thousands of items and is a great opportunity for collectors and dealers.

Items from Cinemabilia will include movie stills, negatives, movie posters, movie and theater related books and magazines, tapes, CDs and more – a veritable treasure trove of material, from the early 20th century to the present day. Cinemabilia was a small store but it bulged with books, magazines and mementos of movies, past and present, combining both graphics and literature.

Ernest Burns opened Cinemabilia in 1965, in a retail space that had previously housed a travel agency, and across the street from where he lived in an apartment. Burns was a hard-core movie buff, originally from New Orleans, and Cinemabilia offered him the opportunity to indulge his passion and earn a living doing it. The store’s perennial best seller: the book Hollywood Babylon.

Also offered on May 25th will be a collection of Marilyn Monroe and Alfred Hitchcock movie posters and insert sheets; an incredible sheet music collection (to be sold in parts and featuring a great collection of Scott Joplin rags), Black Americana themes, early sports and transportation items, Hollywood celebrity photos with signed documents, rock ‘n’ roll posters and other items.

Looking ahead, Weiss Auctions has another, equally important one-day sale slated for Thursday, June 22nd, also online and in the Lynbrook gallery, with a 10 am start time. Headlining that event will be the single-owner lifetime collection of coffee advertising and other material from Lowell and Barbara Schindler, so massive it will need to be spread out over the course of several sales.

In addition to the coffee items, the collection also includes syrup dispensers, talcum tins, signs, clocks and other advertising pieces. Also featured will be insurance advertising signs, a diamond dye cabinet, a collection of Civil War cartes de visites, and a terrific collection of Alamo related material, to include Davy Crockett, Santa Anna, Ramon Musquiz and Juan Almonte autographs. 

Also sold will be a Thomas R. Miller autographed document, copies of Texas Independence newspapers and more. Books will feature Chagall’s Story of the Exodus (one of 250 signed copies), and art books, including signed limited-editions. Capping the list of top lots is an important letter written on Titanic stationery, from the Holverson family en route to New York.

Weiss Auctions is always accepting quality consignments for future auctions. To consign an item, estate or a collection, you may call them at (516) 594-0731; or, you can send an e-mail to Philip Weiss at Phil@WeissAuctions.com. For more information about Weiss Auctions and the big auctions planned for May 24th and 25th, visit www.WeissAuctions.com. Updates are posted often.

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